Circuits Summary And Series Circuits Flashcards
What does a light bulb need to shine?
Electric current
What are the requirements for a circuit?
Conducting wires
Lightbulb
Cell
What can be added to a circuit?
Measuring instruments
Switch
What does a volt meter measure?
The potential difference of the battery ( ability to deliver energy)
What do volt meters measure in?
Volts (V)
What does an ammeter measure?
The electric current
What does a an ammeter measure in?
Ampères (A)
What is a series circuit?
When light bulbs are connected to the cell(s) in a “circle”
The charges have to flow straight through every single part of the circuit
How is a volt meter connected to a circuit?
In parallel
How is an ammeter connected to a circuit?
In series
What are light bulbs connected in parallel?
Each lightbulb is individually connected to the cell
There are multiple pathways for the electrons to flow through
What light bulbs glow brighter?
Ones connected in parallel
What are the advantages of bulbs connected in parallel?
If one is damaged, the electrons will still flow through the circuit
What is an electric charge?
An excess or deficiency of electrons
How are charges measured?
Quantity of charge (Q)
How is the quantity of charge measured?
In packages of electrons called coulombs (C)
What is the function of a cell?
To supply energy to the charges
It is the driving force for the flow of electrons
How do voltmeters measure the amount of energy in a circuit?
The difference in electric potential on either side of the cell
What does a volt mean?
1 volt means that each coulomb of charge that leaves the cell is provided with 1 joule (J) of energy
What is the total loss of energy in a circuit equal to?
The energy provided by the cell
How do we measure the intensity (I) electrical current?
As the number of charges which flow past a point in a conductor in a certain period of time
What are the two directions of electric current flow?
Conventional
Electron
What is electron current?
When electrons flow away from the negative terminal of the battery to the positive terminal of the battery
What is conventional current?
When the flow of the charge goes from the positive to the negative terminal of the cell
What is resistance a measure of?
How difficult it is for the charges to move through the conductor
What two things affect the intensity of current?
Resistance
Volts
What is the relationship between current (I) and resistance (R)?
Inverse
Resistance increases
Current decreases
What is the relationship between volts (V) and current (I)?
Direct
Voltage increases
Current increases
Why do light bulbs in series glow less?
The electrons flow through both bulbs
Bulbs are resistors
More resistance means slower current
Slower current means glows less
What is the current in a series circuit like?
It is the same at all points in the series circuit
What happens to the voltage in a series circuit?
The initial energy from the battery is divided equally amongst the light bulbs
What are the two types of relationships?
Direct
Inverse
What does adding more light bulbs in series do?
Makes the lights dimmer
How do you find the total voltage in a circuit?
Add the voltage used by each resistor together
What are the two types of circuits?
Series
Parallel
What is the size of a charge determined by?
The number of electrons lost or gained
What is an electric current caused by?
The flow of charges
How many electrons are in a coulomb?
6,25 x 10^18
Why do electrons flow from the negative to the positive terminal of the battery?
They are negatively charged an opposites attract, like charges repel
How is the flow of electrons shown?
Indicated on the conducting wire
An arrow pointing from the negative to positive terminal of the battery
Has e- next to the arrow head
Why was conventional current thought to be the way charges flowed?
Although electrons moved from negative to positive, it seemed as if the flow of charges was going the other way
